NATIONAL: Earthquake causes tremors south west of England and Wales

IF YOU fancy somewhere different to sup a pint, the One Eyed Dog is the place to go.

The pub is on the junction of Elm Grove and Victoria Road North, overlooking Albert Road, in Southsea.

It has been a firm favourite of the alternative scene since the 1990s, popular with music lovers, students, artists, cyclists, and even knitters.

There are DJs four nights a week, a quiz night, and a permanent art exhibition.

It’s what makes the venue popular with the younger crowd, who keep coming back to the pub well after they’ve left university.

Steven Fletcher, from Solent Bike Hub, has held two Roller Racing nights at the One Eyed Dog. The challenge involves two people on static bikes pedalling as fast as they can until they’ve cycled 250 metres.

Roller Racing started in the 1940s and now the craze is back. For Mr Fletcher the One Eyed Dog was the perfect, quirky, place for it.

He said: ‘We’re hoping to make the pub our permanent home.

‘Roller Racing is so much fun and we needed somewhere friendly and full of nice people, which is exactly what the One Eyed Dog is.

‘By the end of a night in the Dog everyone is best mates even though a lot of people have just met for the first time.

‘The staff are nice and I would say it’s one of the friendliest venues in Portsmouth. They are very supportive of cycling.’

The pub, part of Gothic Buildings, opened in 1997 and was called The Green Goose until 1999.

Now it is an important part of Southsea Fest, held in venues across the city each September. Until recently it has been home to a knitting club. The back room which the club has vacated has become a hub of creativity with the exhibition New Walls.

Manager Joe Collis explained: ‘There are 90 pieces of work which include photography, illustration, graphic design and painting. We didn’t want a traditional exhibition on white walls, we wanted it to have an almost bistro style feel to it.

‘After three months we are going to completely redo it and give other people the chance to display their work.

‘That’s why people love this pub. It is alternative but really down to earth.’